Seeking a Balance Conservation and resource use in the Northern Flinders Ranges Government of South Australia Protecting the values of the Northern Flinders Ranges The Flinders Ranges has some of the most recognisable and loved landscapes in South Australia, with outstanding environmental, cultural, and tourism values. The Northern Flinders Ranges is also one of the most geologically diverse and prospective areas in Australia, with a long history of exploration and mining and potential mineral and energy resources of national and international significance. The concentration of all of these values in one region is unique. Making decisions requires care to ensure that there is a balance between conservation and resource use. The State’s Development Plan for the Flinders Ranges (Land not within a Council Area (Flinders)), established under the Development Act 1993, was last consolidated in 2003. Much of the Northern Flinders Ranges lies within the Development Plan’s Environmental Class A Zone. The prime objectives of the Environmental Class A Zone seek to conserve the natural character and environment of the area and to protect the landscape from damage by mining operations and exploring for new resources. Reflecting these objectives, Government already places strict conditions and regulatory controls on mineral and energy exploration and on proposed mining activities in the region. Given the unique values of the region, the South Australian Government recognises the need to further refine the existing management and regulatory framework for ongoing resource activities. In doing this, the key environmental values of the region will be protected, and there will also be greater certainty for exploration and mining companies, landowners, traditional owners and the community. Building on existing knowledge DEH and PIRSA have been undertaking a project to identify the icon sites of the Northern Flinders Ranges and to develop future management arrangements for balancing resource use and conservation in this unique part of South Australia. In particular, the project will establish a set of management policies and zones to protect the most important environmental and landscape values while providing for ongoing access to areas of high mineral prospectivity and for geoscience teaching and research. The project has had a number of guiding principles, including: • Develop a policy using existing knowledge to inform decision making and recognise that the policy will require refinement over time as new information becomes available. • Strive to balance ongoing access to mineral resources with protection of landscapes and the environment. • Important areas should have a management framework that specifically protects the values that make them important. The project methodology involves a spatial analysis of all available data sets to identify the environmental, landscape, wilderness, heritage, geo-heritage, tourism, and mineral and energy prospectivity values. An independent landscape assessment by Scenic Solutions was commissioned which involved public surveys to establish and rank landscape values based on images of a range of landscapes through the Northern Flinders Ranges. Scientific and policy officers worked closely together on this study and the data sets that have been considered include the following themes: • Threatened ecological communities and species • Endemic ecological communities and species • Species and communities at risk • Significant landscape features including permanent and semi-permanent waterholes • Wilderness quality • Visual amenity • Tourism and recreation locations • Surface and structural geology • Geological monuments and type sections • Mineral deposits • Former diggings, mines, occurrences and prospects • Geochemical sampling • Airborne, magnetic, radiometric and gravity surveys • Current and historic exploration tenements • Exploration drillholes • Prospectivity analysis for all mineral commodities The boundary of the study area is those areas of the Northern Flinders Ranges elevated from the surrounding plains. Following analysis of data, the study area was refined to focus on the north-eastern corner where the highest concentration of environmental, landscape and mineral prospectivity values is found, and where there is a need for establishing improved management arrangements. Of interest is that the analysis has confirmed that many high landscape and environmental values are already protected within the Vulkathunha–Gammon Ranges National Park. The values of the Northern Flinders Ranges Landscape Cultural The Northern Flinders Ranges is an area The physical landscape of the of diverse landscapes and great scenic Flinders Ranges is central to the beauty. The landscape assessment Adnyamathanha people who retain revealed that the Mount Painter region, a living connection with their country together with the Gammon Ranges today. The region forms a significant and Freeling Heights, are of high value. part of the cultural landscape of the Adnyamathanha people. Biodiversity There is a high abundance of Mineral prospectivity, national and state conservation mineral occurrences rated and endemic species in the and mines Vulkathunha-Gammon Ranges The region has long been identified National Park and Arkaroola Wilderness as having high prospectivity for Sanctuary in particular. The large copper, gold, and other metals. It is topographic variation provides a one of the most important uranium diversity of micro-climates which in provinces in the world. The area is turn increases the diversity of species also now recognised for having high surviving in the area. Some of the prospectivity for the development region’s most unique species, such of geothermal energy. as the Flinders Ranges Purple-spotted Gudgeon and the Spidery Wattle, Geoscience are found nowhere else in the world. The region is recognised for its The region also contains many species outstanding geological features that are at the extremities of their and processes, many of which are range or are relictual populations that unique to science and of international have survived past periods of climate significance. Their high value to change. Permanent and semi- science and teaching is recognised permanent waterholes and springs in the number of Geological also provide critical refuges for many Monuments, the highest proportion arid zone species. Other species of of which are located within the significance include the iconic Arkaroola Gorge, Mount Gee, Yellow-footed Rock-wallaby. Mount Painter and Armchair areas. Wilderness Tourism Areas within the Gammon Ranges Through both the Vulkathunha- and Mawson Plateau are identified Gammon Ranges National Park and as being of very high wilderness values, the Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary, largely supported by a sympathetic eco-tourism is of high importance management regime. The Mawson which reinforces the region’s value Plateau in particular is identified to the community. as wilderness of potential national significance located within one of the most elevated regions of South Australia. Landscape Quality Landscape Quality HIGH See Proposed Management Zones map ARKAROOLA VILLAGE BALCANOONA NEPABUNNA VULKATHUNHA - GAMMON RANGES LEIGH CREEK NATIONAL PARK 0 20 BELTANA Kms PARACHILNA Landscape Quality HIGH See Proposed Management Zones map ARKAROOLA VILLAGE Landscape Quality HIGH See Proposed Management BALCANOONA Zones map VULKATHUNHA - GAMMON RANGES LEIGH CREEK NEPABUNNA NATIONAL PARK ARKAROOLA VILLAGE Landscape Quality HIGH BALCANOONA 0 20 BELTANA See Proposed Management Kms VULKATHUNHA - GAMMON RANGES NEPABUNNA Zones map LEIGH CREEK NATIONAL PARK ARKAROOLA VILLAGE 0 20 PARACHILNABELTANA Kms BALCANOONA NEPABUNNA VULKATHUNHA - GAMMON RANGES LEIGH CREEK NATIONAL PARK PARACHILNA 0 20 BELTANA Kms PARACHILNA Biodiversity Values See Proposed Management Zones map Biodiversity Values HIGH ARKAROOLA VILLAGE BALCANOONA NEPABUNNA VULKATHUNHA - GAMMON RANGES LEIGH CREEK NATIONAL PARK 0 20 Kms BELTANA PARACHILNA See Proposed Management Zones map Biodiversity Values HIGH ARKAROOLA VILLAGE BALCANOONA NEPABUNNA VULKATHUNHA - GAMMON RANGES LEIGH CREEK NATIONAL PARK See Proposed Management Zones map Biodiversity Values HIGH ARKAROOLA VILLAGE 0 20 Kms BELTANA Biodiversity Value HIGH BALCANOONA NEPABUNNA VULKATHUNHA - GAMMON RANGES LEIGH CREEK NATIONAL PARK See Proposed Management Zones map PARACHILNA ARKAROOLA VILLAGE 0 20 Kms BELTANA BALCANOONA NEPABUNNA VULKATHUNHA - GAMMON RANGES LEIGH CREEK NATIONAL PARK PARACHILNA 0 20 Kms BELTANA PARACHILNA Mineral Prospectivity, Mineral Occurrences and Mines Deposits DEPOSIT DIGGINGS MINE OCCURRENCE PROSPECT Mineral Prospectivity See Proposed Management HIGH Zone map ARKAROOLA VILLAGE BALCANOONA NEPABUNNA VULKATHUNHA - GAMMON RANGES LEIGH CREEK NATIONAL PARK 0 20 Kms BELTANA PARACHILNA Mineral Prospectivity, Mineral Occurrences and Mines Deposits DEPOSIT DIGGINGS MINE OCCURRENCE PROSPECT Mineral PrDoesppoescitisvity HIGH See Proposed Management DEPOSIT Zone map DIGGINGS MINE ARKAROOLA VILLAGE OCCURRENCE PROSPECT Mineral Prospectivity See Proposed Management HIGH Zone map BALCANOOANRAKAROOLA VILLAGE NEPABUNNA Deposits VULKATHUNHA - GAMMON RANGES DEPOSIT LEIGH CREEK NATIONAL PARK DIGGINGS MINE OCCURRENCE PROSPECT BALCANOONA Mineral Prospectivity NEPABUNNA VULKATHUNHA - GAMMON RANGES See Proposed Management HIGH LEIGH CREEK 0 20 NATIONAL PARK Zone map Kms BELTANA ARKAROOLA VILLAGE 0 20 Kms BELTANA BALCANOONA PARACHILNA NEPABUNNA VULKATHUNHA - GAMMON RANGES LEIGH CREEK NATIONAL PARK PARACHILNA